SEMO may end up in No. 2 spot in state for university growth

By the time the official numbers come out in a few weeks, Southeast Missouri State University could have the second-highest percentage increase of all public universities in Missouri for the second year in a row.

Only the University of Missouri in Columbia is growing at a more rapid pace.

"Since 2004, we have usually been around third," said Dr. Debbie Below, Southeast director of admissions.

But the university jumped a spot in the growth ranking in the most recent academic year and last week announced another surge in enrollment for the 18th year in a row.

The first-day enrollment at Southeast this fall was 11,132, a number that includes undergraduate and graduate students. A four-week census released by the university normally shows an increase from the first day, meaning fall 2012 could produce the largest student body ever for the university.

Spring graduation was the largest in Southeast history, with more than 1,100 degrees conferred. Families and friends of some graduates watched ceremonies in overflow areas. Mass event gatherings aren't the only examples of how the university has been bursting at the seams. Residence halls are full again this fall, although the university did not have to use a deferred admission policy for some students who needed to live on campus as it had for the previous two fall semesters.

Two possible expansions of on campus housing are in the works, the first of which would likely add a residence hall with classroom space at the River Campus. Another, a Greek village, which would take outside financial contributions, is only being discussed right now, according to university officials. A residence hall is also under construction on the north end of campus that will house around 260 students starting in fall 2013.

The continuous growth at Southeast is by design. The university several years ago set a goal to have 12,000 enrolled students by 2014. Another goal was to increase diversity on campus. A main element of increasing diversity has been to enroll more international students. So far, this fall there are 811 international students attending Southeast, up from 272 on the first day of the fall 2009 semester.

Southeast's fastest growing academic departments, according to the university's admissions office, which computed percentages using current enrollment compared to enrollment 10 years ago, include Health, Human Performance and Recreation, up 45 percent; Industrial and Engineering Technology, up 51 percent; Nursing, up 115 percent; and Agriculture, up 131 percent. Numbers are also up in the music department, where there has been a 43 percent increase of students since fall 2003, but the most change by far has been in the Department of Theatre and Dance, with a 274 percent increase since a decade ago.

The opening of the River Campus in 2007 and the visual and performing arts programs' reputation for quality have elevated the reputation of the institution for all academic pro grams, according to Below, and drew more interest from prospective students.

Growth in the number of students studying agriculture has been promoted by recent expansion of programs to regional campuses, according to the university. Other state universities are also seeing an heightened interest in agriculture studies among students. Missouri State University saw a 15.2 percent increase since last year of students enrolling in its school of agriculture, according to a news release from the university, which was the largest percent increase among areas of study.

Online learning is also growing rapidly at the university -- the number of students taking only web courses has grown from 677 in at the start of fall 2009 to 851 this fall. The university has increased marketing efforts for several expanded and new programs over the past year.

Other indicators of growth at the university include the increased use of its shuttle transit system. Ridership on the shuttles grew to more than 460,000 riders in the last academic year, according to figures provided by the university. The number was around 150,000 in 2007 and has risen each year since.

eragan@semissourian.com

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